Tag: refund

If you are getting rid of your car and you’ve already paid your taxes on it, you can get a refund on the unused portion of the tax. However, you need to do this as soon as possible. We found this out too late and lost two months’ worth of taxes when we left our car on the drive for over a month.

If your car is no longer roadworthy and you are keeping it off public road until such time as you will actually have sold or given it to a scrappage company, you should declare a SORN (Statutory Off Road Notification). This lets the DVLA know that you do not intend to drive it.

At the same time or later, you can apply for a refund for the tax you have already paid. However, you cannot apply for a refund if the vehicle has been taxed within 21 days. You will need to complete the V14 form, “Application for a refund of vehicle tax”. It is the same form where you declare a SORN.

You can also claim a refund if your car has been scrapped, exported, stolen, sold or transferred, or if you changed the class of car ot a nil value tax class (such as “Disabled”). However, you will need to turn in the tax disc in order to get a refund. If it has been scrapped, you need a “Certificate of Destruction – your questions answered” (INF156). If it is sold, transferred or exported, you will need to return the V5C (Registration Certificate) with the relevant sections filled in. If it is stolen, you will need to report it to the police, who will inform the DVLA. Similarly, if you change it to a nil value tax class, you will need to do this before applying for the refund.

Some things to keep in mind: 1) in order to get a full refund for each full calendar month left on the tax disc, you need to return the form to the DVLA before the first day of the month you want the refund from; 2) you will not be refunded if you have less than a calendar month left on the tax disc; 3) if you bought a 6-month tax disc, there is a 10% surcharge that will not be refunded; 4) you should receive a refund within 30 working days – if not, contact DVLA; 5) you cannot drive the car or keep it on public roads if you receive a refund (no tax disc) unless you tax it again.